On the 23rd of November 2023, the council hosted a high level delegation from the Leaders Academy, department of high level courses, which is affiliated to the German Armed Forces. The delegation is led by Former General Dr. Anskar Rieks (Three stars). This visit was in the light of “Capstone Course 2023”, which is considered from the highest level trainings of the German Leadership Academy. The topic of the visit was “Africa a continent on the move – challenges, opportunities and potentials”. Started the meeting ambassador Mohamed Al-Oraby, the chief of the council, and participated in the meeting number of members of the council.
Ambassador Mohamed Al-Oraby welcomed the German delegation, and gave an overview about the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs, and based on the willingness of the delegation, the visit addressed the Egyptian vision for the German role in Africa and what’s expected from Germany in Africa, in addition to discussing the situation in Libya, Sudan, Israel, and Palestine, referring to the Egyptian view and concerns regarding what’s happening in the Middle East and Africa and the effect of that on its interests.
Ambassador Al-Oraby pointed out the Egyptian position regarding the Palestinian issue, clarifying the efforts of Egypt in providing assistance to Palestinians through Rafah crossing, in addition to having calls with Israel and Hamas, and conducting meetings in Ramallah, and holding “Cairo Summit for peace”, to find a solution and prevent escalation of war in Gaza in the light of interference of non-state actors in the conflict, affirming on the Egyptian refusal of Palestinian displacement from Gaza to Sinai.
Regarding the management of the strip after the war, it’s said we cannot predict the future as the region is full of conflicts and this could last for months. In this regard, Egypt is predicting a European support to preserve stability in Egypt in light of these conflicts. Adding that Palestinians should speak about themselves, and it’s important to contain the resistance movement (Hamas). Referring to the possibility of cooperation between USA and Germany in resolving the Palestinian issue as a third party mediator.
Concerning the African Continent, the council affirmed on the importance of the African continent as there is the Blue Nile that passes through 11 African countries, in addition to the red sea which represents the entrance of the horn of Africa. In this context, he referred to the Egyptian concerns regarding the Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, and the effect of that on the share of downstream countries, including Egypt, from the Blue Nile, explaining how this will lead to drought because of the shortage of the reserves of high dam water.
In a related context, it’s referred to the possibility of tripartite coalition among Egypt, Germany, and the Arabic Organization for industrialization – which has a role in Africa – to find a solution for situations in Sahel Region in Africa. Adding that, it’s important to have initiatives for Africa and horn of Africa especially with the expansion ambitions of Ethiopia in the region.
Also, it’s important for the international community to pay attention to the situation in Libya, in the light of the existence of non-state actors and militias and different tribes in Libya, as this needs cooperation and assessment for the situation. Therefore, it’s important to have cooperation between Egypt and Germany to prevent escalation in the region.
